What Obama's Budget Says About Homelessness

by Josie Raymond · 2010-02-06 13:47:00 UTC
Topics:

President Obama released his 2011 budget this week and homeless advocates are giving it the seal of approval. As always, some worthy issues, like housing vouchers, see funding increases while others, like aid for the elderly, lose out. This year, though, people who recognize that the answer to homelessness is homes feel like the budget is a step in the right direction. The National Alliance to End Homelessness points out that the budget -- which is still subject to approval by Congress -- proposes the largest increase in homeless services in 16 years. The NAEH is especially pleased about the extra $190 million allotted to McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants. Sign the petition showing your support!

According to the Washington Post, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) expects to up its spending on rent assistance for low income families by more than $2 billion to keep needy people in their homes. The Department of Veterans Affairs will get double the funding for homeless vets. The VA has the admirable goal of reducing the number of homeless veterans from the current rate of 131,000 to 59,000 by July 2012 (which, according to Changemaker and executive director of the National Coalition for the Homeless Neil Donovan, can't be done without assistance for soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan).

Unfortunately, these increases come at the expense of funds for housing for the elderly and disabled. In 2010, housing assistance for people with disabilities was $300 million, according to the Wall Street Journal; in 2011, the budget proposes cutting it to $90 million. Aid to the elderly would see even steeper cuts, from $825 million in 2010 to $274 million in 2011. Native American Housing Block Grants will also be cut by 17 percent if the President gets his way.

For more on President Obama's proposed programs, check out the National Alliance to End Homelessness' budget breakdown.

Photo credit: hoyasmeg

Josie Raymond is a Change.org editor who has reported from the streets of the South Bronx, written for several magazines that folded (not her fault) and fixed thousands of typos.
PREVIOUS STORY:
Unemployment Office Errors Are Costing the Poor
NEXT STORY:
Sallie Mae Blinks!

COMMENTS (5)

    Comment Policy

    · All fields are required to comment.

    [X]

    Comments on Change.org are meant for further exploration and evaluation of the campaign on Change.org. To that end, we welcome constructive comments. However, we reserve the right to delete comments which, as determined solely in our discretion: (1) are offensive, abusive, or off-topic; (2) include content solely intended to personally attack the campaign creator, (3) are designed to subvert or hijack comment threads rather than contribute to them; and/or (4) violate our terms of service and/or privacy policy. Repeat offenders may be permanently removed from the site at our discretion. Please also be advised that: (A) we do not actively curate and/or monitor in any manner whatsoever the comments made on the Change.org platform, and (B) the creator of each campaign on Change.org may remove any comment at her/his/its discretion.